Mental decline is one of the most common fears among people from all generations, especially those who have witnessed the harsh effects of dementia through a loved one.

Aside from new medicine being formulated to try and fight dementia, it’s been said that changes in diet or physical activity can help prevent early onset symptoms of this disease.

That’s why Australian researchers are turning to lifestyle insights to try and find more ways to preserve brain function.

In 2022, it was estimated that over 400,000 Australians were living with dementia. Nearly two-thirds of Australians with dementia are women.

However, Ralph Martins, a Professor from Macquarie University, said that he sees a future where medication and lifestyle changes will ‘become potent ways to preserve the brain the same way cholesterol is managed to protect the heart’.

He is currently heading a new trial to help prevent dementia and has recruited 600 volunteers to further develop the study.

Most dementia trials involve medicine that tries to stop the disease from taking hold. Earlier this year, a new FDA-approved drug called lecanemab was granted conditional approval to be used as a treatment for people with Alzheimer’s disease. This was after reports said the drug was found to reduce markers of amyloid beta – the protein that’s naturally found in the body that causes Alzheimer’s disease.

It was reported that patients who took lecanemab appeared to have a slower rate of cognitive decline as opposed to those who took a placebo. However, it wasn’t a smooth path to get the drug to the market, as reports revealed that three deaths occurred during the drug’s clinical trials. You can read more details about this drug, including the controversy surrounding it, here.

New research aims to prove if lifestyle changes can prevent dementia. Credit: Magda Ehlers/Pexels

However, Professor Martins’ research is about boosting health to prevent or slow down memory loss.

‘We're looking at recruiting 600 people into this study, from 60 to 79 years of age. We'd love to change those age groups in time,’ he told reporters.

Tracy, 60, is one of the first to be enrolled. She said her main motivation is because of her mother’s experience living with dementia.

‘There'd be times she'd ring me up from the shopping centre where she'd go every day and say “I don't know where I am, I'm lost”,’ she shared.

Tracy also stated she wants to do everything possible to reduce the risk of being diagnosed.

Volunteers in the active group will undergo brain training four times a week, and physiologists and dieticians will help boost the fitness and nutrition of the study’s participants.

Volunteers will also be put on a meal plan called MIND, which is a mix of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH diet – this could also be used to lower blood pressure.

Blood tests will be conducted as a way of measuring the outcomes of the study.

According to Professor Martins, this study follows the work of Finnish researchers, which showed that the results from a lifestyle program done in two years helped to protect the brains of older adults at risk of dementia.

‘That showed a significant effect on lowering cognitive decline,’ Professor Martins stated.

While the team has funding for two years, the aim is to track volunteers over five years. Australia is one of the 60 countries taking part in this research.

Professor Martin’s team has already recruited 600 volunteers. Credit: Anastasia Shuraeva/Pexels

​

Another study claims that vitamin D – a supplement you can find at your local chemist – can lower the chance of developing dementia.

This comes after researchers in the UK and Canada studied over 12,000 people aged 71 and over (all of whom did not have dementia at the beginning of the trial). According to the study, about 4,600 of the participants took vitamin D supplements, and after ten years, it was found that almost 2,670 participants developed dementia. Of these patients, only 679 (25 per cent) had taken vitamin D supplements, while around 2,000 people (75 per cent) did not.

You can read more details about this research here.

If you’d like to be part of this study (or another clinical trial), you can check out Macquarie University’s website here for more details.

Key Takeaways

• A new dementia trial is being run by Professor Ralph Martins from Macquarie University to help prevent dementia.
• The trial involves volunteers undergoing brain training, exercise and a specific diet called the MIND diet.
• The trial follows another by colleagues from Finland, which showed a lifestyle program after two years helps protect the brains of older people at risk of dementia.
• The team has funding for two years, and the trial involves volunteers in Australia and 60 other countries.

What do you think about this research, members? Do you have any tips for keeping your memory sharp? Share them with us in the comments below!

 

[Cheezil]

Worth a try (physical health is obviously important anyway), but I'm sceptical about it warding off dementia after seeing my dad decline with the cruel disease & he was as fit & strong as anyone i know right up until he died with it aged 87). Perhaps he delayed its onset until his early 80's, but its not something thats easy to prove either way!

 

[Baz1960]

Mental decline is one of the most common fears among people from all generations, especially those who have witnessed the harsh effects of dementia through a loved one.

Aside from new medicine being formulated to try and fight dementia, it’s been said that changes in diet or physical activity can help prevent early onset symptoms of this disease.

That’s why Australian researchers are turning to lifestyle insights to try and find more ways to preserve brain function.

In 2022, it was estimated that over 400,000 Australians were living with dementia. Nearly two-thirds of Australians with dementia are women.

However, Ralph Martins, a Professor from Macquarie University, said that he sees a future where medication and lifestyle changes will ‘become potent ways to preserve the brain the same way cholesterol is managed to protect the heart’.

He is currently heading a new trial to help prevent dementia and has recruited 600 volunteers to further develop the study.

Most dementia trials involve medicine that tries to stop the disease from taking hold. Earlier this year, a new FDA-approved drug called lecanemab was granted conditional approval to be used as a treatment for people with Alzheimer’s disease. This was after reports said the drug was found to reduce markers of amyloid beta – the protein that’s naturally found in the body that causes Alzheimer’s disease.

It was reported that patients who took lecanemab appeared to have a slower rate of cognitive decline as opposed to those who took a placebo. However, it wasn’t a smooth path to get the drug to the market, as reports revealed that three deaths occurred during the drug’s clinical trials. You can read more details about this drug, including the controversy surrounding it, here.

View attachment 15761

New research aims to prove if lifestyle changes can prevent dementia. Credit: Magda Ehlers/Pexels

However, Professor Martins’ research is about boosting health to prevent or slow down memory loss.

‘We're looking at recruiting 600 people into this study, from 60 to 79 years of age. We'd love to change those age groups in time,’ he told reporters.

Tracy, 60, is one of the first to be enrolled. She said her main motivation is because of her mother’s experience living with dementia.

‘There'd be times she'd ring me up from the shopping centre where she'd go every day and say “I don't know where I am, I'm lost”,’ she shared.

Tracy also stated she wants to do everything possible to reduce the risk of being diagnosed.

Volunteers in the active group will undergo brain training four times a week, and physiologists and dieticians will help boost the fitness and nutrition of the study’s participants.

Volunteers will also be put on a meal plan called MIND, which is a mix of the Mediterranean diet and the DASH diet – this could also be used to lower blood pressure.

Blood tests will be conducted as a way of measuring the outcomes of the study.

According to Professor Martins, this study follows the work of Finnish researchers, which showed that the results from a lifestyle program done in two years helped to protect the brains of older adults at risk of dementia.

‘That showed a significant effect on lowering cognitive decline,’ Professor Martins stated.

While the team has funding for two years, the aim is to track volunteers over five years. Australia is one of the 60 countries taking part in this research.

View attachment 15762

Professor Martin’s team has already recruited 600 volunteers. Credit: Anastasia Shuraeva/Pexels

​

Another study claims that vitamin D – a supplement you can find at your local chemist – can lower the chance of developing dementia.

This comes after researchers in the UK and Canada studied over 12,000 people aged 71 and over (all of whom did not have dementia at the beginning of the trial). According to the study, about 4,600 of the participants took vitamin D supplements, and after ten years, it was found that almost 2,670 participants developed dementia. Of these patients, only 679 (25 per cent) had taken vitamin D supplements, while around 2,000 people (75 per cent) did not.

You can read more details about this research here.

If you’d like to be part of this study (or another clinical trial), you can check out Macquarie University’s website here for more details.

Key Takeaways

• A new dementia trial is being run by Professor Ralph Martins from Macquarie University to help prevent dementia.
• The trial involves volunteers undergoing brain training, exercise and a specific diet called the MIND diet.
• The trial follows another by colleagues from Finland, which showed a lifestyle program after two years helps protect the brains of older people at risk of dementia.
• The team has funding for two years, and the trial involves volunteers in Australia and 60 other countries.

What do you think about this research, members? Do you have any tips for keeping your memory sharp? Share them with us in the comments below!

Been many studies already. Basically, start eating well, drop sugar now and exercise now. Anything is better than nothing. No processed food and eat like our grand grandparents did.

 

[goodmorning]

hep and it works i have doe it now and im in my 70s

 

[Ricci]

My Mum and Dad were both as fit as fiddles, ate the same food and did similar exercise and yet Mum got Dementia and Dad didn't. I know females are more prone to it but the only real difference I saw between the two is that Dad kept his brain active. He was still learning new things right up till he died, was an avid reader, he had interests outside of the home, an active hobby and was a keen gardener. Mum on the other hand was a typical housewife and spent her days cleaning and cooking, things she could do on autopilot with her eyes shut. She didn't push herself to keep her brain active, she was happy to sit and veg in front of the tv of an evening where dad would be trying to figure out the computer we gave him. I think keeping your brain active is a big part of staving off Dementia.

 

[Penny4]

Totally agree keeping your brain busy can benefit. My SIL's mother and all her siblings inherited a genetic strain of Dementia. There's seems to be different strains/types of Dementia. My neighbour's father died of Dementia in his 60's. One can only hope we don't acquire it and avoid the dreaded nursing home.

 

[Nana Zorak]

I am 85 & although I forget some small things I read daily , do quizzes daily & am very interested in most things other than socialising with others. I have two old friends whom I love to have visit me but I don't any longer visit them as I prefer my home to any other. I have all the markers of becoming a hermit I think.

 

[RTS]

Sleep is also considered to be important in staving off dementia. Several studies have already been done which show that eight hours or more of good quality sleep is the best defence.